Politics

For about two years, from June 2010 until May of this year, our show held a series called the Maryland Morning Screen Test.

Libowitz web extra.mp3

With so much media attention on GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s taxes, a closer look at what exactly “effective tax rate” means, why Romney reportedly paid a 15 percent rate while President Obama and Vice Presidential candidate Paul Ryan paid 20 percent, and what average Americans pay on their income. Also, documents recently obtained and published online by Gawker.com show that Bain Capital used an aggressive tax strategy to save its partners more than $200 million in income taxes and more than $20 million in Medicare taxes, a strategy that that some tax attorneys say is illegal.

Journalist, commentator and long-time Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne Jr. argues that Americans can’t agree on who we are because we can’t agree on who we’ve been, or what it is, philosophically and spiritually, that makes us Americans. In “Our Divided Political Heart: The Battle for the American Idea in an Age of Discontent,” Dionne tours American history, from the Founding Fathers to Clay and Lincoln and on to the Populists, the Progressives and the New Dealera. He provides an analysis of our current politics that shatters conventional wisdom.

What if Baltimore's vacant lots were transformed into half-acre farms, producing greens, onions, herbs, berries, honey and other fresh produce for residents and for the city's restaurants and markets? Urban farms are becoming increasingly popular in Baltimore and other cities. What does it take to run one, and could this be an option for revitalizing some abandoned areas and for reducing the number of "food deserts" in the city?

U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin, D-Maryland, on the Romney-Ryan team's proposals for Medicare; why gun control has become such a political non-starter in the wake of mass shootings, even for candidates with safe seats; and the government's preparation for extreme weather related to climate change.

If this were the 1960s, I might have been smoking a cigarette while doing this broadcast.  But it’s not the 60s, the risks of smoking are known, taxes are much higher … and the number of cigarettes being smuggled into Maryland to evade those taxes is higher as well.  According to Maryland's comptroller, Peter Franchot, the number of contraband cigarettes seized during the past fiscal year is much higher than i

Yesterday, the Maryland General Assembly convened for a special session to take up legislation about gambling.

Analysis and commentary on political news. This week, presidential politics and the latest from the campaign trail. And a look at potential VP picks as GOP hopeful Mitt Romney is expected to make his choice in the coming weeks. Guests include political commentator and writer Brian Wendell Morten and blogger Richard Cross, a former GOP press secretary and gubernatorial speechwriter.

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We open the phone lines to get listener questions and comments on the latest in political news. 410-662-8780 or toll-free 866-661-9309. Send us an email: midday@wypr.org.